Chapter 763: Franz II's All-In
The voting results came in just over ten minutes—80 votes in favor, 2 abstentions, and not a single vote against.
From that moment on, Wallonia in the Southern Netherlands officially became three provinces of France.
When Chevènement finished reading the results, a burst of enthusiastic cheers erupted in the hall.
Someone started shouting, and soon others followed:
"Long live His Majesty the King!"
The people immediately joined in the fervent shouts:
"Long live His Majesty the King!"
"Long live France!"
"Long live His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"
After the crowd gradually quieted down, General Gaillard raised his arm and declared loudly:
"Now, we must dedicate all our energy to ensuring one thing: France's victory in this war."
The Chamber of Commerce members all nodded in agreement.
Gaillard continued, "I propose that we immediately begin a large-scale conscription of soldiers to the Brussels front, to reinforce the French army... oh, no, to reinforce *our* grand army!"
...
Vienna.
Schönbrunn Palace.
Lord Grenville, the British Foreign Secretary, and Marquis Wellesley bowed respectfully to Franz II. They then gestured to the Prussian Foreign Minister beside them before both withdrew from the Grand Gallery Hall.
Wellesley, hearing the faint curses echoing from behind them, turned to Grenville and asked, "Why did you deliberately refuse the Holy Roman Emperor?
"There's no hope for the Dutch legions' combat effectiveness. After Prince Coburg's defeat, there are no forces left on the Western Front capable of stopping the French.
"Considering the battlefield situation, the Duke of York should deploy troops to reinforce the Southern Netherlands as quickly as possible, otherwise the situation there will swiftly become uncontrollable."
Just two days prior, news of the Austrian army's defeat in the Southern Netherlands had reached Vienna, a full week after the Battle of Wavre.
Britain, Austria, and the other nations were still unaware that Joseph had already surrounded Brussels, and his 30,000 troops were relentlessly assaulting the city.
And just now, Grenville had refused the request for the Duke of York to reinforce Prince Coburg, citing that "Vienna's stubbornness and unilateral decision to attack Wallonia prematurely led to the current dire situation."
According to the Coalition Forces' original strategic plan, Prince Coburg was supposed to launch his offensive simultaneously with the forces along the Rhine, putting the French under immense pressure and forcing them to spread their attention, thus revealing vulnerabilities.
However, Franz II, eager to gain more influence in the battles along the Rhine—where numerous German states bordered both banks, believing a display of Austria's military might there would aid in the future unification of these smaller states—had decided to resolve the conflict in South Germany early, then redeploy Prince Coburg's legions to the Rhine region.
Yet, the Austrian army on the Western Front proved to be the quickest to fall, forcing Franz to swallow his pride and appeal to the British for aid...
Lord Grenville offered a faint smile:
"The Austrians must learn a lesson.
"Furthermore, only when His Majesty the Emperor is truly desperate will he be willing to commit his full strength to the war."
Wellesley frowned. "But the situation on the Western Front can't be delayed any further..."
Grenville nodded. "You are quite right. But if I'm not mistaken, His Royal Highness the Duke of York should already be en route to the Southern Netherlands."
Wellesley sighed. "This army was originally meant to attack Luxembourg, but due to the Austrians' shortsightedness and underestimation of the enemy, it has been forced to linger in the Southern Netherlands."
Grenville chuckled. "Speaking of which, aren't our own gentlemen just as shortsighted and prone to underestimating the enemy? If you were in command, you certainly wouldn't still be dawdling in Utrecht."
Wellesley was the current British Secretary of War and had been leading the reforms of the British Army. However, he was too young and lacked sufficient experience, so the vital responsibility of Commander-in-Chief of the British forces fell upon the shoulders of the British Prince, the Duke of York.
In fairness, the Duke of York's military capabilities were undoubtedly among the best in Britain, yet in Grenville's eyes, his old friend Wellesley was the optimal choice to command the British Army.
Wellesley shook his head. "It's not entirely His Royal Highness's fault. The quality of the soldiers under his command is very poor; anyone in his position would face the same difficulties."
Grenville looked at him. "By the way, when will your new troops be ready for battle?"
"The war broke out too early. Their weapons aren't fully equipped yet," Wellesley said, his brow furrowing. "It's all thanks to that damned Gas Streetlights fraud, which led to numerous London factories going bankrupt. This has severely slowed down the production of new rifles."
"How much longer will it take?"
"Currently, we can produce 1,300 percussion cap muskets each month. We'll need about 5,000 more."
Indeed, a crucial aspect of Wellesley's military reforms was the replication of France's percussion cap muskets.
The moment he first encountered this weapon, he immediately recognized that future battlefields would undoubtedly be dominated by it.
Therefore, upon his appointment as Secretary of War, he immediately convened the ordnance factories to begin replication.
Thanks to Britain's advanced manufacturing industry and a large number of skilled craftsmen, after a year and four months and an investment of nearly 100,000 Pounds Sterling, they finally succeeded in replicating the percussion cap musket.
While their accuracy was slightly inferior to the Auguste 1788 model, they had at least bridged the generational gap in weaponry.
However, the London Gas Streetlights incident then occurred—the bankruptcy of numerous downstream factories severely impacted the ordnance factories' production progress.
With Wellesley's unwavering financial support, the ordnance factories built their entire industrial chain, finally boosting production capacity.
However, even now, Wellesley's 30,000 new troops had not yet been fully equipped with percussion cap muskets.
The following midday.
Lord Grenville returned to the Grand Gallery Hall.
Franz II, his face grim, cast a glance at Baron Thugut. The latter sighed reluctantly and addressed the Englishman, "His Majesty has decided to accept the proposal you made yesterday.
"Our nation will begin general mobilization, reinforcing the Rhine front with 50,000 to 70,000 additional troops within six months."
His words signified that Austria's national resources would be completely drained to fuel the war.
At the same time, it meant the Emperor would concede interests to noble groups in Hungary, Bohemia, and other regions to secure their greater support.
"You have made the most correct decision," Grenville declared, bowing to Franz II. "In that case, our nation will also increase the loan amount to help you maintain your army's operations."
Thugut continued, "His Majesty will subsequently summon the various states of the Holy Roman Empire, demanding they dispatch more troops."
Previously, Franz II had declared war on France in the name of the Holy Roman Empire. Theoretically, all states of the Holy Roman Empire were considered to have joined this conflict.
However, most German states, already de facto independent, were unwilling to get involved in this mess, so very few actually committed troops.
This time, Grenville demanded that the Holy Roman Emperor forcibly order these states to send troops, threatening them with joint punishment from Austria and Prussia if they refused.
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